CHANDIGARH: For
Harsimran Kaur
, picking up a sport was like choosing between mother and father. Mummy, Sumanpreet Kaur, represented India in volleyball, while daddy, Sukhdev Singh, played
basketball
for his state.
On Monday, Harsimran, 16, became the first non-Australian prospect selected from
National Basketball Association
(NBA) Academies' Women's Programme to attend NBA Global Academy. She will train from November 7 to 24 at the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) centre of excellence in Canberra. Asked about the choice of sport, she told TOI on telephone from her national camp in Bengaluru: "Yes, it was quite difficult to choose between volleyball and basketball. ACL (anterior cruciate ligament injury of the knee) had shortened my father’s career, so he was hell-bent on getting me into his sport."
About the Australian opportunity, the girl who stands six feet and five inches tall said: "I am very excited and a bit nervous going into a new environment and training with the best athletes of different countries, ajusting with new coaches and facilities. I look forward, though, to learning from all the players and coaches." Her earlier training schedule of November 7 to 29 was curtailed because India have a few tournaments coming up and coaches want her on the team.
Harsimran, who comes from Kapurthala district of Punjab, has represented India in the Jakarta 3x3 Asian Championships in August. Last April, she was one of the four Indian girls competing against top US junior cagers in the first NCAA Women's Final Four Next Generation programme in Tampa. She went to
Basketball Without Borders
Asia in Tokyo this summer and became most valuable pLayer (MVP) at the third NBA Academies Women's Programme camp held in Mumbai from October 2 to 5.
Her goal is to be drafted into the Women's NBA league from an American university that she hopes to join on sports scholarship. She said: "I have a few offers, but I look for a university that holds a good position in the NCAA league (of Americal colleges), where I want to impress NBA scouts with my skills."
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